In a 2014 YouTube video featured by TEDxMidAtlantic, Lisa Guernsey (Director of the New America Foundation's Early Education Initiative) stated her belief that the earlier iPads (and similar media) can be introduced to a child, the greater the chances that child will developmentally benefit. Although she is not an advocate of the iPad replacing all human interaction, Guernsey supplementally stated that the iPad is the device that can help catapult children into better, stronger educational opportunities. She said:
We can learn from the media and then apply that outside. My kids today are 9 and 11 years old, and they have screens all around them. I think about the world they're growing up in, I think about the next generation that's coming up behind them, and I want our kids today to have people around them who are interacting with them while they're interacting with the media" ("How the iPad", 2014).
Hu and Garimella (2014) published a report titled "iPads for STEM Teachers: A Case Study on Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Proficiency, Intention to Adopt, and Integration in K-12 Instruction." STEM teachers (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics = STEM) fell into the spotlight in 2008 following a Congressional Research Service Report which discussed that STEM students were performing below the average international score (p. 51). For example, out of 43 countries, the Congressional Report ranked the United States 13th in science literacy and 18th in math literacy (Hu & Garimella, 2014, p. 51). "Based on these findings, there has been a call at the national level to increase students’ mathematics and science content knowledge, and technology-based application of content is seen as one means to promote student learning math and science" (Hu & Garimella, 2014, p. 51). Hu and Garimella view the iPad as a means of technology holding the potential to help improve STEM students' quality of education all across the United States.
iPads also hold the potential for teachers to engage students more effectively (rather than simply rely on traditional methods). Kucirkova, Messer, Sheehy and Panadero (2013) researched a group of students working with iPads in a foreign language (in this case, Spanish) classroom. They discovered that app and app features can influence a child's level of engagement; however, the educational value of the engagement can increase or decrease based on the quality of the app and app features (p. 183). In other words, "...the more an app supports easily accessible open-ended content accomplishments, the more likely it is that the activity will have positive educational impact" (Kucirkova, Messer, Sheehy and Panadero, 2013, p. 183). The same study also concluded that the students they featured in their study preferred technology-mediated methods of learning (i.e., apps and the Internet) over the traditional (i.e., textbook, piece of paper and pencil) method (Kucirkova, Messer, Sheehy and Panadero, 2013, p. 183).
The iPad may also solve issues of student disinterest, student lack of participation, student motivation, and a negative student attitude. In a study of high school science students, it was concluded that the iPad did assist with increasing student interest in a lesson. In a "typical" lesson, many students would not even have finished the classwork assigned; whereas in this iPad activity, every single student completed the classwork (a worksheet) and their answers were thorough and detailed (Ward, Finley, Keil & Clay, 2012, p. 6). The authors wrote, "Clearly, the students were engaged by the novel experience of using a tablet PC, and that engagement likely enhanced student involvement in the more-rigorous aspects of the lesson" (Ward, Finley, Keil & Clay, 2012, p. 6). Researchers Dhir, Gahwaji and Nyman (2013) - while making it very clear that iPad research is still in its beginning phases and no research on iPad effectiveness can yet provide conclusive/inconclusive evidence of its benefits or drawbacks - did find that "...teachers’ attitudes toward the use of technology for educational purposes also inspire and influence the students toward technology use. Interestingly, it was found out that the school children were positive and enthusiastic because their teachers were equally positive and energetic toward iPad use (pp. 713-714). Lastly, Patricia Riley's (2013) study with her music education students at the University of Vermont revealed that iPad use improved quality of instruction, student engagement, and student willingness to try new concepts (pp. 83-86). Because she is a professor of music, she reported a tremendous success with many of the music-related iPad apps available for her students (for example, GarageBand). She stated that the iPads also improved quality and frequency of communication, organization, and also encouraged a much more positive learning environment overall (Riley, 2014, p. 85).
Parents and teachers who worry about the quality of apps they select for classroom have many methods to go about determining if an app aligns with all required educational standards. Most of the time, an iTunes store filter will be enforced by the school's director of technology, which will eliminate the possibility of inappropriate app selection by students or teachers. However, if given the freedom to choose, Selma Powell (2014) recommends the following course of action for teachers seeking new apps to utilize on iPads in the classroom:
Select an app appropriate for the grade level and subject of your targeted group of students
Select five to 10 apps to review; review them prior to exposing your students to them
Determine if the app/apps you want to use align with pedagogy, Common Core, state standards, standard course of study, lesson plans, etc.
Identify potential limitations of the app; ensure it will meet your educational goal
Choose your app!
Identify and prepare for meeting the needs of your unique students and your students with disabilities, as not all students are performing on the same level. Weight the app's strengths and weaknesses, and keep in mind that students with disabilities have IEP (Individualized Education Plans) that you must adhere to at all times.
Set up the iPads! During this time, teachers may want to remove unnecessary distractions (for example, programs such as Siri, Camera, Facetime, etc.) (Powell, 2014, pp. 20-24)
Cahill and McGill-Franzen (2013) suggested additional methods to select appropriate apps (p. 37):
Students with disabilities are another category of individual that can benefit from iPad use in the classroom. In an online article offered through the site Education Week: Digital Directions titled "iPads Become Learning Tools for Students With Disabilities" a student named Sloan with Down syndrome and apraxia - two conditions that make it extremely difficult to speak coherently so others can understand - is given the ability to communicate her knowledge at school by allowing the iPad to speak for her (Shah, 2011). "Now, Sloan is using a tool that attracts other students, has boosted her self-confidence, and offers a means of communicating in greater depth with peers, her mother says" ("iPads Become Learning", Shah, 2011).
There are multiple apps that address many different disabilities. Not surprisingly, the Apple web site has a section dedicated to Special Education, with a focus on features to assist students struggling with the following disabilities (2014):
Hearing:
Vision: Learning and literacy:
Physical and motor skills:
Auburn University's College of Education released a presentation that can serve as a guide for educators searching for the best ways to serve their students with special needs (Renner, 2014). The article is quite thorough in its entirety, but the pages all contain helpful content, such as (Renner, 2014):
Fourth Theme: What Issues Can iPads Remedy?
In a 2014 YouTube video featured by TEDxMidAtlantic, Lisa Guernsey (Director of the New America Foundation's Early Education Initiative) stated her belief that the earlier iPads (and similar media) can be introduced to a child, the greater the chances that child will developmentally benefit. Although she is not an advocate of the iPad replacing all human interaction, Guernsey supplementally stated that the iPad is the device that can help catapult children into better, stronger educational opportunities. She said:
We can learn from the media and then apply that outside. My kids today are 9 and 11 years old, and they have screens all around them. I think about the world they're growing up in, I think about the next generation that's coming up behind them, and I want our kids today to have people around them who are interacting with them while they're interacting with the media" ("How the iPad", 2014).
Hu and Garimella (2014) published a report titled "iPads for STEM Teachers: A Case Study on Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Proficiency, Intention to Adopt, and Integration in K-12 Instruction." STEM teachers (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics = STEM) fell into the spotlight in 2008 following a Congressional Research Service Report which discussed that STEM students were performing below the average international score (p. 51). For example, out of 43 countries, the Congressional Report ranked the United States 13th in science literacy and 18th in math literacy (Hu & Garimella, 2014, p. 51). "Based on these findings, there has been a call at the national level to increase students’ mathematics and science content knowledge, and technology-based application of content is seen as one means to promote student learning math and science" (Hu & Garimella, 2014, p. 51). Hu and Garimella view the iPad as a means of technology holding the potential to help improve STEM students' quality of education all across the United States.
iPads also hold the potential for teachers to engage students more effectively (rather than simply rely on traditional methods). Kucirkova, Messer, Sheehy and Panadero (2013) researched a group of students working with iPads in a foreign language (in this case, Spanish) classroom. They discovered that app and app features can influence a child's level of engagement; however, the educational value of the engagement can increase or decrease based on the quality of the app and app features (p. 183). In other words, "...the more an app supports easily accessible open-ended content accomplishments, the more likely it is that the activity will have positive educational impact" (Kucirkova, Messer, Sheehy and Panadero, 2013, p. 183). The same study also concluded that the students they featured in their study preferred technology-mediated methods of learning (i.e., apps and the Internet) over the traditional (i.e., textbook, piece of paper and pencil) method (Kucirkova, Messer, Sheehy and Panadero, 2013, p. 183).
The iPad may also solve issues of student disinterest, student lack of participation, student motivation, and a negative student attitude. In a study of high school science students, it was concluded that the iPad did assist with increasing student interest in a lesson. In a "typical" lesson, many students would not even have finished the classwork assigned; whereas in this iPad activity, every single student completed the classwork (a worksheet) and their answers were thorough and detailed (Ward, Finley, Keil & Clay, 2012, p. 6). The authors wrote, "Clearly, the students were engaged by the novel experience of using a tablet PC, and that engagement likely enhanced student involvement in the more-rigorous aspects of the lesson" (Ward, Finley, Keil & Clay, 2012, p. 6). Researchers Dhir, Gahwaji and Nyman (2013) - while making it very clear that iPad research is still in its beginning phases and no research on iPad effectiveness can yet provide conclusive/inconclusive evidence of its benefits or drawbacks - did find that "...teachers’ attitudes toward the use of technology for educational purposes also inspire and influence the students toward technology use. Interestingly, it was found out that the school children were positive and enthusiastic because their teachers were equally positive and energetic toward iPad use (pp. 713-714). Lastly, Patricia Riley's (2013) study with her music education students at the University of Vermont revealed that iPad use improved quality of instruction, student engagement, and student willingness to try new concepts (pp. 83-86). Because she is a professor of music, she reported a tremendous success with many of the music-related iPad apps available for her students (for example, GarageBand). She stated that the iPads also improved quality and frequency of communication, organization, and also encouraged a much more positive learning environment overall (Riley, 2014, p. 85).
Parents and teachers who worry about the quality of apps they select for classroom have many methods to go about determining if an app aligns with all required educational standards. Most of the time, an iTunes store filter will be enforced by the school's director of technology, which will eliminate the possibility of inappropriate app selection by students or teachers. However, if given the freedom to choose, Selma Powell (2014) recommends the following course of action for teachers seeking new apps to utilize on iPads in the classroom:
Cahill and McGill-Franzen (2013) suggested additional methods to select appropriate apps (p. 37):
Students with disabilities are another category of individual that can benefit from iPad use in the classroom. In an online article offered through the site Education Week: Digital Directions titled "iPads Become Learning Tools for Students With Disabilities" a student named Sloan with Down syndrome and apraxia - two conditions that make it extremely difficult to speak coherently so others can understand - is given the ability to communicate her knowledge at school by allowing the iPad to speak for her (Shah, 2011). "Now, Sloan is using a tool that attracts other students, has boosted her self-confidence, and offers a means of communicating in greater depth with peers, her mother says" ("iPads Become Learning", Shah, 2011).
There are multiple apps that address many different disabilities. Not surprisingly, the Apple web site has a section dedicated to Special Education, with a focus on features to assist students struggling with the following disabilities (2014):
Hearing:
Vision:
Learning and literacy:
Physical and motor skills:
Auburn University's College of Education released a presentation that can serve as a guide for educators searching for the best ways to serve their students with special needs (Renner, 2014). The article is quite thorough in its entirety, but the pages all contain helpful content, such as (Renner, 2014):